Amy Rees Anderson

Amy Rees Anderson

high school

Liz Murray grew up with parents who were both cocaine addicts. Her family ran out of food a few days into each month because her parents spent their welfare checks on feeding their drug addiction instead of feeding her and her sister. So as young girls she and her sister would go from door to …

I left home to come to college when I was 17 years old. One of the first things I had to do was setup my very first checking account at the bank. Up to that point I had never had my own checking account. I had always had jobs and worked throughout High School but …

“Today: had my top on backwards, the pants I’d slept in and looked like Jack Nicholson from the shining. Saw all of the people I know. All. Of. Them!” Isn’t that exactly how it goes?! Those days you feel prepared for anything often nothing seems to happen… and then the days you aren’t prepared at …

One of the most difficult experiences for any father to go through is watching his daughter date. When our daughter Ashley, who is now 21 years old, was going out on her first double date at the age of 16, my husband greeted her date at the front door of our home. He then put …

Some of the greatest song quotes ever – “It takes two to make a thing go right…it takes two to make it outta sight…” –Rob Base and “Don’t just stand there bust a move!” -Young MC and “If you gotta problem, yo I’ll solve it….Word to your mother…” -Vanilla Ice Last Saturday night my husband …

Do you ever have days where you wake up feeling blah? Where every outfit looks terrible, and your hair just won’t go right, and you can’t find your keys, and you are late for work…we’ve all been through days like that. Sometimes we endure them and pray they will quickly be over. Other times we …

And snow it did! The snow started coming down late last night and by this morning it was already more than a foot deep. Now I happen to love looking out the window at the snow but I cannot stand having to go out into the snow! I don’t like the cold and I don’t …

The approach of most higher education institutions is completely backwards today. Rather than first year college students picking their classes based on their goal of a specific dream job, they end up picking classes based on what the University deems to be generally required, the classes their friends are signing up for, and what time …

A young girl just starting High School this fall emailed my daughter Ashley (19 yrs old) to ask her what advice she could give her. My daughter sent her the following letter and as soon as I read it I instantly knew I had to share it with everyone! Every single one of us needs …

I LOVE LOVE LOVE to dance. Anyone who spends five minutes with my family pretty much knows that my husband and I and our two kids are constantly dancing around to music as we drive, as we clean the house, as we throw impromptu dance parties pretty much any place, anytime. I still remember coming …

“It takes nothing to join the crowd. It takes everything to stand alone.” Most everyone will have times in their life when they have to make a choice to stand alone. For most it comes during childhood when a group of kids is doing something you know you shouldn’t do and you have two choices…you …

Happy New Year everyone! The start of a brand new year – it is so exciting! 2015!!! Don’t get me wrong, 2014 was a major year for my family that was full of big time milestones. We finished building our new house and our new houseboat, we moved into our new home, my daughter Ashley …

Yesterday I was invited by a good friend to come to the set of the TV Show Shark Tank. Shark Tank happens to be one of my favorite shows on television today because I absolutely love it from an educational standpoint on all the lessons it can teach entrepreneurs. Each week as I watch the …

I feel like a five year old kid on Christmas Eve night! I am so excited for tomorrow that I am jumping out of my skin! MY SON COMES HOME TOMORROW! After two LOOOONNNNGGGG years of only being able to write him once a week and only being able to talk to him on Christmas …

When a happy time of life comes to an end it is hard, plain and simple. Tomorrow I will be attending my daughter Ashley’s High School Graduation. It is a major life event for a young person. Ashley had an amazing High School experience. She was surrounded by good friends and she chose to be …

This week is going to be one of the biggest weeks of my life. And it will no doubt be a bittersweet week for our family. First, my 18 year old daughter Ashley is graduating from High School. Oh my goodness I am not ready to let that little girl go! My baby….my youngest….my mini …

Do you ever look in the mirror and feel shocked to see a grown up staring back at you? Do you ever look in the mirror and realize that you can no longer pretend that you are still young, cool, and hip, and you are forced to face the fact that instead of being hip, …

Starting the IPOP Foundation was a dream I had for many years. IPOP is an acronym for “In Pursuit of Perfection” which has been a personal mantra of mine for a very long time. Long ago I came to realize that living a successful life isn’t about achieving perfection; rather it was about living life …

Very little is more inspiring then a group of our youth today coming together to spread a positive message in the world. In a world so full of trashiness and negativity, it takes courage to stand up for good morals and values today – especially for our young people! The peer pressures they face are …

When is the last time you were in a parade? Like actually in the parade itself? Marching down the street smiling and waving at the crowds along the route as you enjoy the music of the marching band… For me it was today as I drove the homecoming royalty (which included my daughter) in the back …

I have a great story to share with you today – it is a story that was shared with me tonight and it totally inspired me to want to GET MY SPARKLE ON! Hopefully sharing it with you will inspire you to GET YOUR SPARKLE ON too! Going into this school year my daughter set a goal for herself …

No matter what ups and downs we have experienced in our lives, there have always been a million blessings. Sometimes we forget to acknowledge or even recognize those blessings because there are so many other things to easily get distracted by. And when you have always had certain blessings in your life, it’s easy to take …

The most powerful personality traits to develop in one’s quest for success are incurable optimism and integrity. Optimism is defined as “the belief that good things will happen to you and that negative events are temporary setbacks to be overcome.” (-Mayo Clinic). Integrity, as I would define it, is “doing the right thing, at the …

There is huge power in the examples set by the people we surround ourselves with. Tonight I want to share a story of one of the great examples in my life. My daughter Ashley is 17 years old. For those of you who have followed my blog for a time, you are aware that last …

Ah yes, the famous words of Hannibal on the A-Team. There is little in life that is better than when a plan comes together, especially when the plan itself turns out to be far larger and expansive then any plan you had pictured in your own mind 🙂 Throughout the years of my life I …